Saturday, July 7, 2012

2011 Audi RS5 vs. 2010 BMW M3, 2011 Cadillac CTS-V

Comparison Tests

Achtung Heroes: To get the very most out of three scorching coupes, we find it necessary to cross the border.

BY TONY QUIROGA

PHOTOGRAPHY BY MARK BRAMLEY

Magical things can happen when crossing borders: What is illegal on one
side can suddenly become legal on the other. Cross into Holland, for
example, and cough away in a hazy “café” without worrying about posting
bail. Head into Germany, and go every bit as fast as you want, legally.
Or you can drive on Europe’s most famous racetrack. Just head west out
of Frankfurt for a two-hour drive to the village of Nürburg, home to
the 12.9-mile long Nürburgring
Nordschleife circuit. It’s most often rented by big-time race teams and
automakers, but the public is allowed to play on certain days for 23
euros per lap (about $28—plus you get a discount for buying multiple
laps).

What’s more, German drivers are for the most part alert, educated, and
courteous, and every car has to pass a rigorous roadworthiness
inspection to keep rusted-out hulks off the autobahns. In many ways, it
feels like the complete opposite of the American driving experience—in
Germany, you can go 180 mph without fear of an arrest, but flip someone
the bird, and you might end up in jail.

So, to test the latest challengers to our comparison-test champ, the BMW
M3, we flew across the Atlantic, from the land of speed traps to the
land of unlimited speed.

Facing the M3 for the first time is Audi’s new RS5. Looking to avenge the RS4’s loss to an M3 in a December 2007 comparison test,
the RS5 is the latest car to emerge from Audi’s Quattro GmbH
skunkworks. Based on the elegantly sleek A5/S5, the RS5 has its fenders
punched out and its snout stuffed full with a 450-hp, 4.2-liter V-8.
All-wheel drive distributes the power to the 275/30R-20 Pirelli P Zero
tires while a new seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox provides quick shifts
and an amusing launch-control function.

Cadillac has never built a car more perfectly suited to the libertarian nature of the German autobahn than the CTS-V.
Now available with two doors, everything ahead of the windshield is
shared with the sedan, including the 556-hp, 6.2-liter V-8 and six-speed
automatic (a manual is standard). All of the creased sheetmetal from
the steeply raked windshield back to the pointy rump and functional
spoiler/third brake light is unique to the coupe. Other coupe
exclusives—a retuned chassis, a wider rear track (by 0.8 inch), and
reworked steering—give the latest CTS-V an extra shot of alertness.

Now in its fourth year of production, the M3 gets BMW’s newly created,
M3-specific Competition package ($2500) that adds wider 19-inch wheels
(which increases both front and rear tracks by a half-inch), plus
revised tuning for the adaptive shocks and a 0.4-inch-lower suspension.
Otherwise, the 414-hp M3 is unaltered for its latest smackdown with the
Audi and the Cadillac.

It took $2000-plus in premium fuel, more than 1000 miles driven, and a
lot of nights spent guzzling pilsners before the mist cleared and we
were able to decide whether Cadillac or Deutschland is truly über alles.